Dublin Service League

Ingredients

Cranberry Puree:

• 8 oz fresh cranberries (may use frozen)

• ⅓ cup water

• ⅓ cup granulated sugar 

Crust:

• 1  9-in Biscoff crust {one 8.8oz package of Biscoff cookies and 8 tablespoons of salted butter}

Cheesecake:

• 1 cup of good quality white chocolate melted {this requires 3  4oz packages of white chocolate - Ghirardelli is recommended}

• 24oz cream cheese, completely softened to room temperature

• ⅔ cup granulated sugar

• ½ cup sour cream at room temperature

• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

• 4 large eggs at room temperature 

Sugared Cranberries:

• 6oz fresh cranberries (may use frozen but need to thaw first)

• ⅓ water

• ⅓ cup of sugar + ½ cup of sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

Biscoff crust: In a food processor, add the cookies and pulse until finely crushed. Next add melted butter and mix until all crumbs are evenly coated. Press the mixture into a lightly sprayed 9 in springform pan. Use fingers to press the crumbs slightly up the sides of pan and use fingers or glass bottom to pack crust into the bottom. Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 5-7 minutes. Put aside to cool.

Cranberry Puree: 

1- In a medium pot, add cranberries, water, and sugar and cook over medium heat. Stir frequently for 8-10 minutes, use the spoon to sort of smash them down as they cook.

2- Once cooked for 10 minutes, place the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl. Discard fruit solids and cover and refrigerate puree. (requires forceful pressing and you will need to scrape off back of sieve to get all of it) You will end up with a small amount but it goes a long way.

Cheesecake:

1- Preheat oven to 325 

2 - In a bain-marie or microwave safe bowl add the white chocolate and cream to melt. If microwaving, put it on for 10-15 second increments. Once almost all melted just mix for a minute or two and the residual heat will melt all the chocolate. Be careful not to scorch. Set aside to cool.

3 - In the bowl of an electric mixer fixed with paddle attachment or a large bowl with a hand-held mixer, beat the cream cheese for 3 minutes at low speed. It should be smooth with no lumps. Add the sugar and beat for another 2 minutes on low. Add the sour cream, vanilla extract, and melted white chocolate - mixing until fully combined. Make sure to scrape sides of bowl to get all mixed.

4 - Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. You should have a creamy batter wit no lumps. Pour half the batter into the prepared pan/crust then spoon in half of the cranberry puree and swirl with knife then top with remaining batter and then the remaining cranberry puree. This time when you swirl, try not to over swirl as this turns the batter into a pink look instead of a thicker cranberry colored swirl. Place the 9-in springform pan into a 10-in cake pan then place the cake pan into a roasting pan and fill the roasting pan with hot water halfway up the sides of the cake pan. (This prevents any water from getting in the cheesecake and you don’t have to wrap everything with foil.

5 - Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes to 1 hour and 20 minutes, the middle 2 inches of the cheesecake should jiggle just a bit. (you can also use a thermometer to check internal temp is 140-145 F) - You also may want to put it on a lower rack in over to make sure it doesn't brown too much on top.

6 - Turn the oven OFF and OPEN door so it is cracked open, let the cheesecake cool in oven for 1 hour then take it out of the roasting pan and cool on a wire rack for another hour. Next, wrap cheesecake with plastic wrap and let chill in fridge overnight or at least for 6 hours.

Sugared Cranberries:

1 - In a medium pot add the water and sugar and mix together over medium heat for 2-3 minutes to make the sugar syrup. Add the cranberries and mix to combine. Remove from the heat and use a slotted spoon to transfer berries to wax paper to cool for an hour.

2 - Add the additional ½ cup of sugar to a bowl and add cranberries. Toss to coat with sugar and use for garnish.

*Wrap Cheesecake in plastic wrap or in an air tight container and store in fridge for up to  5 days.